Photos of the Day 07/20

A firefighter rushes to aid his colleague who ran into trouble amid thick oil cover as they attempted to fix an underwater pump in Dalian, China, on Tuesday. Crude oil started pouring into the Yellow Sea off a busy northeastern port after a pipeline exploded late last week, sparking a massive 15-hour fire. The government says the slick has spread across a 70-square-mile stretch. Jiang He/Greenpeace/AP

Security personnel and spectators look on next to a giant cutout of Sri Lankan spin bowler Muttiah Muralitharan erected on a 17th century Dutch-built fortress during the third day of the first test cricket match between India and Sri Lanka in Galle, Sri Lanka, on Tuesday. Eranga Jayawardena/AP

A soldier marches during a military parade in Quibdo, Colombia, on Tuesday to celebrate 200 years of independence from Spain. William Fernando Martinez/AP

First lady Michelle Obama looks on in Baltimore, Md., with some of the children participating in a joint initiative between Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Players Association, and the White House on Tuesday. Joe Giza/Reuters

Afghan President Hamid Karzai (l.), and US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (center r.) tour a crafts bazaar in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Tuesday as they attend an international conference on Afghanistan. Paul J. Richards/AP

Novices sit in lines in front of the Maha Chedi during a mass ordination at Dhamagaya Temple in Pathumthani Province, central Thailand, on Tuesday. Ten of thousands of men were ordained in a dawn ceremony to mark the three-month long Buddhist Lent or the rainy season when Buddhist monks remain in the monasteries to study the teachings of Lord Buddha. Apichart Weerawong/AP

Spanish freestyle motocross rider Dany Torres performs during a show jump at the bullfighting arena in Chinchon, Spain, on Monday. The show was held to announce the fourth stage of the Red Bull X-Fighters World Tour in Madrid, which will take place on July 22 and 23. Joerg Mitter/Reuters

Horse Of The Year Rachel Alexandra gets a bath from groom Gerardo Morales at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J., on Tuesday. Rachel Alexandra will compete in Saturday's $400,000 Lady's Secret Stakes at Monmouth Park. Bill Denver/AP

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich shakes hands in Chicago with a supporter, Art Hamill, Chicago fireman, upon his arrival at the Federal Court building on Tuesday. Blagojevich's wife, Patti, (r.) enters the building. Blagojevich was expected to finally step into the witness box at his corruption trial, but the judge hearing the corruption case abruptly adjourned court for the day without explanation. M. Spencer Green/AP

Actress Lindsay Lohan appears in court Tuesday at the Beverly Hills Municipal Courthouse as she surrenders for a 90-day jail sentence for violating the terms of her probation on drunk driving charges by missing alcohol education classes. Al Seib/Reuters

Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev signs a guest book at the Alexandrovsky Palace in the city of Tzarskoe Selo, the former Russian Tzar's residence near St. Petersburg, Russia, on Tuesday. Mikhail Klimentyev/Ria Novosti/Reuters

A boy sleeps on the floor as Jewish men pray during the mourning ritual of Tisha B'Av at the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site, in Jerusalem's Old City, early Tuesday. Bernat Armangue/AP

Audience members take photos of a fireworks display at the Japanese premiere of "Inception" in Tokyo on Tuesday. Issei Kato/Reuters

Children cool off in the fountains of the Parc Andre Citroen in Paris, France, on Tuesday. AP

After widespread protests, a six-month state of emergency started in October. Now, much depends on the next move of leaders who have long used their track record of economic development to paper over widespread human rights abuses and political repression.

ByJames Jeffrey, ContributorDecember 9, 2016

Stringer/AP/File

For nearly a year, mass protests surged across Ethiopia – and stormed across the world’s headlines – as a movement that began with farmers fighting land grabs outside the country’s capital mushroomed into the country’s most sustained and widespread period of dissent and protests since its ruling party came to power more than two decades ago.